I have questions on the book The Travels of Marco Polo. What kind of
traveler was he? What is the religion he admires? In what century was
the book written in?  Is it a primary source book? Help!

Hello Ciao~

Marco Polo (1254?1324) traveled to Asia and explored it for 24 years.
He managed to travel further than any other foreigner before him, all
the way into China.

Polo traveled to Asia via ship, then used various means to travel on
land. Polo, who was a Venetian merchant, traveled primarily as The
Great Khan?s ambassador.

Polo?s religion of choice was Catholicism.  According to "The Travels
of Marco Polo," Khan was intrigued by Catholic beliefs; he sent envoys
to Italy to meet the Pope and persuade him to send 100 scholars back
to Asia to prove Christianity ?most agreeable.? Khan promised that if
he was persuaded, his whole nation would become Christian.
Unfortunately, the Pope had just died, and after waiting several years
for a new pope to be appointed, the envoys tired of waiting and
returned home without Catholic scholars. But they did return with
Polo. (Later two priests agreed to visit Asia; the traveling turned
out to be so hazardous, however, that they turned back, having never
reached Khan.)

Polo dictated the book while in prison, from 1298-1299 (the 13th
century). It is considered a primary source by most people, because
Polo purports to have been an eye-witness and the book is supposed to
be in his own words. However, some scholars believe Polo never made it
as far as China, and relied on the tales of others for these sections
of the book.

For more information on ?The Travels of Marco Polo,? check out these websites:

?The Travels of Marco Polo? at Awerty: http://www.awerty.com/marco2.html

?Marco Polo & His Travels? at Silk Road:
http://www.silk-road.com/artl/marcopolo.shtml

?Marco Polo? at About.com:
http://geography.about.com/cs/marcopolo/a/marcopolo.htm

?Marco Polo & His Travels? at Ask Asia:
http://www.askasia.org/silk_roads/l000098/l000098d.htm

And, to read the book, ?The Travels of Marco Polo? at Project Gutenberg:
http://www.gutenberg.net/etext/10636

Regards,
Kriswrite

RESEARCH STRATEGY:
Researcher?s personal knowledge
Google search: 
"TRAVELS OF MARCO POLO"

---

Request for Answer Clarification by ciao-ga on 26 Aug 2004 08:30 PDT

Great information!  Thank you!  I will also rate the answer.  I do
have one other question regarding Marco Polo.  How did people judge
him?

---

Clarification of Answer by kriswrite-ga on 26 Aug 2004 08:58 PDT

Hi Ciao~

This is really a separate question, and should be asked in a new
question. However, if you look at the links I provided, you will see
how history has judged Marco Polo. Some historians think he used other
people's experiences as his own (with regard to China). In addition,
many modern scholars find his attitude toward the Asian culture to be
arrogant, self-serving, and narrow minded. In Polo's mind, his culture
was far superior, and he let that be known in his writings.

Kriswrite